It Chapter Two (2019) User Reviews

Call me "old fashioned," but CGI monster overkill does nothing for me

[Fat_cats_stack_cash · 5/10 · 7 September 2019]

I really, realllly wanted to like this film. As a huge fan of the original mini-series (and EVERYTHING Tim Curry), I knew I'd have a challenge going into both Chapter 1 and Chapter 2 with an open mind. I had to separate. I didn't have as high of expectations as I did for Chapter 1 as Part 2 of the mini series was much weaker than the Part 1 anyway as well as Stephen King's It (Book).

The actors were great. Even the first few jump scares were decent, and then it just became overkill. And not scary whatsoever. All of the CGI monsters look ridiculous and completely take you out of the moment. I grew up watching 80s/90s horror (AND LOVING IT). The baddies were REAL and TERRIFYING. For example, Mrs. Massey, the bloated bathtub corpse in The Shining. That was a real, completely horrifying image that has stayed with me 30 years after I First saw the movie. I don't understand the obsession with CGI when there's no need for it.

Sadly, this movie was just a drawn out bore.

Flawed yet semi-satisfying

[HBSmith_Critic · 7/10 · 7 September 2019]

I was originally hesitant to see director Andy Muschietti's rendition of Stephen King's beloved book "It" back in 2017, but after hearing splendid reviews from fans and critics; I took a chance and came out pleasantly surprised. Since then, I agree with why that is now considered by many to be a modern Horror classic.

Now our favorite Losers club are back to face Pennywise again in "It: Chapter Two". Adding up all of that and that this is my second most anticipated mainstream film of the year, does it live up to the hype? Well, somewhat. It's an imperfect but solid sequel.

In spite of a three hour runtime it kept my attention for the entire ride. Like "Chapter One"; it's wonderfully shot (with effective use of sepia tone colors) and the editing and scene transitions are eye popping. Many of the dialogue and scares are cleverly written (a scene at a restaurant is a highlight).

In spite of an often unsettling plot, there is plenty of levity to be found here. It unfortunately suffers from inappropriate timing with many of the jokes, causing the film to play like a dark comedy. Half of the frightening and dramatic moments are finished by gags and one-liners. There is one scary sequence that really works until it's ruined by a joke straight out of a Deadpool film.

The pacing is troubling at times; since some of the opening introductions are rushed, while certain flashbacks to the younger versions of the Losers Club could've been shorter. This makes the narrative not feel as fresh or as fulfilled compared to the first film.

It's most accomplished at being an emotionally fulfilling journey for the Losers club. This is sharpened by the adult actors being dead ringers for the kids from the original; including the main highlight Bill Hader- an instant classic as Richie, as he combines the best of his talent from "Saturday Night Live" with intense urgency to best serve the idea of "What would Richie from It be like if he grew up?"

If you're looking for a good cinematic start for this Halloween season, and something to bring you back all the feels from Chapter One from September 2017; Chapter Two is a somewhat messy but nicely done job.



Grade- B

"It Chapter Two": Too Long for Too Little

[hunter-friesen · 6/10 · 15 September 2019]

In 1913, Henry Ford introduced the assembly line to the Ford Motor Company. He made a ton of money and was hailed as a leading innovator. Now just a hundred years later, director Andy Musciehtti brings that same assembly line principle to It Chapter Two as he serves up his scary products in the exact fashion as the one before.

This sequel to the highest-grossing horror movie of all time (unadjusted) takes place 27 years later in the same town of Derry, Maine. The rambunctious kids are all adults now and have gone on their separate paths to some form of success. Unfortunately, the good fortune for each is put to an end by the return of Pennywise, who seeks more victims for his twisted games. Being the only ones that have stopped the evil force, the adults must come together again to put an end to this bloody mess.

Director Andy Muschietti returns behind the camera after the record-breaking success he earned from 2017's "It". For the second time around, Muschietti goes even bigger and bolder than before, both in terms of the horror set pieces and the length.

When it comes to giving audiences what they came to see, Muschietti delivers on adding even more blood, gore, and creepiness. Pennywise's indescribable powers get even more creative as his prey are stalked and slaughtered with unnerving brutality.

The biggest fault that plagued the previous film was its recycling of cheap jump scares that were meant to artificially hold your attention. That same problem is even more glaring in the sequel as any scary moments are just startling moments where something pops out at the screen. The more they happen, the more predictable and boring they are to watch.

A runtime is never indicative of quality by itself, every movie should earn its length through skill and craftsmanship. And at 170 minutes, "It Chapter Two" falls way short of earning its record-breaking runtime. Instead of the horror being a slow burn, it's more of a slow churn as the recycled jump scares quickly lose their minuscule luster and make this already long film feel even longer.

Screenwriter Gary Dauberman takes up the impossible task of adapting Stephen King, a challenge that has killed the careers of countless adapters before him.

Dauberman tries his best to break away from the ridiculousness within King's novel, but his efforts end up backfiring on him and make the film even more awkward as some elements are left in and some left out. The story wants you to take it pretty seriously, but keeping in the weird elements make that almost an impossible task.

Muschietti didn't do much to justify the excessive length, but Dauberman should shoulder more of the blame with his uneven pacing. The film starts great with the together and playing off each other with a fun and brisk pace. Then, against all logic, Dauberman has them split up for ninety minutes, severely slowing things to a crawl and forcing the jump scares to keep you awake.

The highest regards should go to casting director Rich Delia as he has brilliantly put together a group of adult actors that uncannily look like their younger counterparts. Unfortunately, good looks are the only quality some actors possess here.

James McAvoy does fine as Bill. The most evident acting trait he shows off is his struggle to hide his Scottish accent with a less than convincing New England one.

Having a rocky 2019, to say the least, Jessica Chastain follows up the bomb that was "Dark Phoenix" with another subpar performance. She doesn't shine as brightly as Sophia Lillis' younger Beverly despite being the more acclaimed actress with a lot more screen time.

The standout performances come from the two Bills in the cast, Hader and Skarsgård. Hader plays adult Richie and fairs the best in the cast at toeing the line between drama and comedy.

Skarsgård as Pennywise is a sight to see but unfortunately doesn't get seen for long stretches. Between him and Heath Ledger's Joker, future performances for clowns now have an insanely high bar to reach.

With over five hours of material between two films, the "It" series has come to a less than satisfying close with "It Chapter Two". There are some things to admire Muschietti and co. for doing or trying to do. But for every great Bill Skarsgård moment (which is all of them), there were just as many moments of wasted potential due to unoriginal filmmaking. Overall, between its highs and lows, "It Chapter Two" makes for a semi-enjoyable time. Just make sure to bring a seat cushion.

Not as good as the first chapter...

[paul_haakonsen · 6/10 · 6 October 2019]

In comparison to the first chapter of this remake, then the 2019 "It: Chapter Two" was just a massive step back in the wrong direction.

Why? Well, first of all, Pennywise wasn't scary at all. In fact, it was progressively getting more and more difficult to take him serious as an embodiment of evil as the movie progressed, because he was just too goofy. And whereas he was genuinely disturbing in the first chapter, the clown was just loosing it in chapter two.

And running at close to three hours, "It: Chapter Two" was just too long, and too much of a drag to sit through, especially when so much of the contents just felt like it was there to fill in the movie and add to the play time of the movie. There were so many things that could easily have been trimmed away without the storyline suffering.

The CGI was good, and definitely carried the movie a long way. But some of the CGI such as the long-limbed old woman chasing Beverly was just too comical and didn't really feel like it fit into the movie.

It was nice that they actually had Stephen King himself in the movie for a short cameo.

They had a good selection of casted actors and actresses to perform in the movie as the adult versions of the children that Pennywise stalked and fought. It was really nice to see James McAvoy in the movie.

All in all, this wasn't really a fulfilling conclusion of the first chapter, and I was left with a feeling of 'was that really it?' when the movie ended. The movie was not as intense and interesting as the 2017 "It: Chapter One" movie was.

I am rating "It: Chapter Two" six out of ten stars.

Not your average horror movie

[jtindahouse · 8/10 · 4 September 2019]

Very early on in 'It Chapter Two' there is some wink wink dialogue about an author writing a great book, but messing up the ending. Anyone who is familiar with the 'It' book or original mini-series will know the ending was not well liked. Here now though they had a chance to rectify things, and I can assure you they did. Not just in terms of the ending, but the entire second entry is actually a fantastically made film and in my opinion superior to part one.

The film is exceptionally long for a horror movie at nearly three hours. The thing is though I can't see it having the same impact if it were much shorter. There was a lot of layers to fit in. This isn't your average "fast-food" horror like the 'Conjuring' universe films. This is as much a drama in a lot of ways as it is a horror. The first half of the film especially. A long time is taken reintroducing us to the characters, showing us where they are with their lives now and building up their résumés again. Then in the second half of the film (and yes I'm talking about almost an entire 90 minutes) the film kicks into hyper-drive with non-stop, in your face horror - and it is a sight to behold.

The cast were again all perfectly selected. Bill Hader in particular steals the show. He is given some great one-liners to work with, much the same as Finn Wolfhard was, and he nails every one of them. There is also a great Stephen King cameo. This isn't just a case of blink and you'll miss him, he is given an entire scene with some hilarious dialogue. I wasn't sure whether 'It Chapter Two' would be able to stick the landing and give the story the ending that it deserves, but it certainly did. I had a great time with this movie and I think any lover of the genre will as well.

Was this a comedy or a scary movie???

[rburgz · 2/10 · 14 October 2019]

Why they tried to add so much humor is beyond me. It ruined the entire movie.

Now the guy that plays Pennywise did a great job. Except for the CGI Pennywise (that was out of his hands).When he played the character with no CGI I was blown away.

A frightening yet touching story of forgotten friendship and lost opportunities.

[eelen-seth · 8/10 · 8 September 2019]

The sequel to the 2017 box office success 'It' starts exactly where it left off. Almost no explanatory flashbacks to the situations the Losers Club got themselves into, fighting the terrifying Pennywise. Only difference in 'It Chapter Two' - they're all grown up and ready to end It, once and for all.

27 years ago, a fear-indulging creature tried to feast on every teenager alive in small town Derry. A group of friends, defeated the being (disguised as a clown) and moved on with their lives. Or so we think.. After a brutal killing one evening, Mike (Isaiah Mustafa) decides to call every single one of his old friends, begging them to come back to their hometown. Barely remembering the events of almost three decades ago, they catch up over dinner and drinks and memories start to flow back. Sooner than they'd expect, It strikes again and the returning members of the Losers Club feel betrayed by Mike, luring them in knowing well enough they'd have to fight their common enemy once again. Mike did a whole lot of research to figure out It's origin and also knows how to defeat this being. But our group of friends has to stick together to successfully finish this fight against evil.

Andy Muschietti is back to direct the second chapter to the well known Stephen King novel. It seems like he grew up, just like the Losers Club did. The jokes matured, as did certain subjects within the story (domestic abuse, sexual orientation..). Another impressive note is Benjamin Wallfisch's score. Simply eerie and unsettling. While I thought his score for 'It' was a bit bland and boring to listen to without the visuals, he decides to go bigger and bolder in this film and it really pays off.

The movie has a lot of inventive sequences, which sometimes will blow your mind in how well constructed they are. A few of them are re-used from the previous chapter, but in a different and more terrifying way. The production design is next level perfect. While I thought 'It' relied heavier on jump scares, Chapter Two uses them less. There are still quite a few of them that actually work, but they don't seem as forced as the ones that came before. Whenever a new CGI-monster comes along, you simply ask yourself who designed these creatures. Some are straight up nightmare fuel.

For fans of the younger cast, don't worry, they are still present through the use of flashbacks. But the focus is all on the adult versions this time. The true standout is by far Bill Hader, who plays grown up Richie - an alcoholic stand up comedian with a secret he can't seem to express to the outside world. His acting and comedic timing breaks some of the horror-tension, but never in a way it becomes annoying. He's genuinely enjoyable to watch and has an emotional arc to feel for. Other surprisingly great performances come from James Ransone (grown up Eddie) and Jessica Chastain (adult Beverly). James McAvoy (adult Bill) isn't bad, but it seems like he's playing one of his personalities from Split/Glass, with his accent being a bit too thick and an over-the-top lisp. While Mustafa, Jay Ryan (Ben) and Andy Bean (Stanley) just didn't get enough screen time to be rememberable. Bill Skarsgard is back as Pennywise, and while I thought he was brilliant in 'It', I kept wondering how much CGI they used to put him in this film. It became quite distracting, especially in the second half.

It Chapter Two is the better half of the story, which explores the very interesting origin of this evolving menacing force and shows the devastating consequences of its wrongdoings towards a group of children. It not only shows that it's okay to be a loser or someone that doesn't entirely fit in to today's society, it makes us think of what we are capable of by just believing in ourselves. A frightening yet touching story of forgotten friendship and lost opportunities.

Doesn't float quite as brilliantly

[TheLittleSongbird · 7/10 · 5 December 2019]

Stephen King's novel is a masterpiece, didn't properly appreciate it on first read but with King's style being much more familiar to me (whereas it was a bit of a shock at first) it still stands as a genuinely scary, nostalgic, at times very funny and very powerful book and one of his best. The 1990 mini-series is an uneven one, with a great first half and disappointing second half with the ending and IT's true form having notoriously poor reputations for good reasons. Absolutely loved the first 'IT' film from 2017 and consider it better than the mini-series personally.

'IT Chapter 2?' Not so much. Actually did find a lot to like about it, with a lot of what was great about the first film still here, and for me it is better than has been said. The mixed reception is more than understandable but it is not as terrible as the more negative reviews say in my view. Chapter 1 is the better film, but the second film is better than the second half of the mini-series on the whole and again it is a more than admirable and brave attempt at adapting an extremely difficult and near-unfilmable book.

While there is a good deal to recommend, there are some glaring problems. There are problems with the pacing here. Especially in the middle act, where it meanders due to being too flashback heavy. Some flashbacks being more interesting than others, with Ben's and Richie's being quite unnerving, Eddie's (the too long adult encounter not much better) was neither scary or memorable. The special effects are more variable this time round and suffer too from overuse. IT's true form comes off worst and is as bad, am not kidding here, as that in the mini-series which is notoriously universally panned.

The defeat of IT is beyond dumb and really undermines a final act that actually started off quite powerfully despite also being a bit too drawn out. Henry Bowers is also extremely underwritten, and both has little presence when having barely any screen time and quite badly overacted. Lets not get started on his very rushed, too easy and quite stupid defeat.

However, as was said before there is a lot to like. The production values mostly are terrific, not just the lighting but also the beautifully realised Derry setting, taut editing and cinematography that's both stunning and unnerving. Epileptics be warned though, there is a scene towards the end of the middle act that is heavy in strobe lighting effects. The music is haunting without being over-scored, ever since the first film it has been impossible to hear "Oranges and Lemons" in the same way again and that opinion has not changed. Andy Muschietti directs with suspense, potent realism, confidence and affection, while the writing (which is also remarkably true to King's style) has a great balance of hilarious comedy, touching drama and affectionate nostalgia. Richie getting the best lines.

Much has been said about the film being too long, am mixed on this consensus personally. The book is huge and both the child and adult time-lines need a quite long length to do it justice, having said that the middle act definitely could have done with a trim. The story is not just a horror story, but also blends humour (mostly from Ritchie), emotion and a 'Stand By Like' like nostalgia. There are memorable moments here, the Mrs Kersh encounter, the Fortune Cookie scene and the very freaky beginning (am amazed they managed to film this scene) being standouts. There is one improvement here over the previous film, Mike is much more interesting here which was necessary as this time as an adult he is something as the glue of the group.

Cannot fault the performances. All the adults are very well cast, with Bill Hader absolutely killing it as Richie, and the children are great again especially Finn Woolfhard and Sophia Lillis (the standouts in the first too). Bill Skarsgaard is again the stuff of nightmares as Pennywise, filling giant clown shoes with aplomb and putting his own spin on it. If asked who is better between Skarsgaard and the unforgettable Tim Curry, mainly because of more familiarity Curry gets the edge but they are both must sees in their own way.

Summarising, not brilliant and uneven but enjoyed it on the most part. 7/10

Good, but has issues

[mckeesean · 7/10 · 6 September 2019]

It was entertaining, but they seemed confused as to whether the movie was supposed to be horror or a comedy. Several scenes had the audience trying to laugh and then scream, practically in the same breath. For a 3 hour movie, they should've better managed the emotional pacing of the film.

Ok but not great

[petermcconnell · 7/10 · 12 September 2019]

This was ok but wasn't great, to much cgi and to be honest wasn't scary, found far to much of the parts that were ment to be scary funny, first part was a lot better but I did enjoy the movie I think a 7 out of 10 is fair, hate people that give 10s and 1s for movies like this

BORING

[monzeriano · 5 September 2019]

I'll keep it simple sketchs of unorganised boring movie ,a lot left the theater and the others were talkin out of how long it is , nothing new , not to be compared to chapter 1 at all

Struggling with this review...

[matthewssilverhammer · 7/10 · 13 September 2019]

It was a cool, confident 80's-style throwback, whose strong visuals and rare timbre made it a standout among the lame high-concept, overly dark excuses for terror we normally get. My enjoyment led to reading the novel, and I'm glad I did. Not only because it's great, but because I think I would be emotionally lost by Chapter Two otherwise. While it certainly hasn't lost any of the boldness of the first film, much of the actual storytelling skill and tonal control has been lost under an effort to shove 6+ hrs of story into 3. What we're left with is ultimately not a very "good" movie, but one with enough sincerity and fantastic individual moments that it's sloppiness can almost be overlooked. We find The Losers all grown up, returning to Derry when their clown-friend begins wreaking havoc again. Despite perfect physical casting, the chemistry among these grown up performers comes nowhere near the endearing heights of the younger cast. When the kids return, it serves as a cheap but effective reminder of why we love these characters. The gentle naivete and fear of a young outcast teen proves to be paramount to the success of the horror, so this sequel seems to choose to either move away from scares altogether, or it falters. Instead its strengths lie in individual scenes and unique themes. The Losers must relive their traumatic pasts, which not only provides the best 45 minutes of the movie, but beautifully and tenderly speaks to the effect childhood has on identity and engrained fear. It's a brave movie, even if kind of a "bad" one, which is a combo I prefer to safe (boring) "good" movies.

Loved it

[draggonrg · 9/10 · 8 September 2019]

This movie was a very well done sequel to It. Ran a little long and would have liked to see more penny wise but overall very happy

disappointing

[madneeta-480-243072 · 6/10 · 14 September 2019]

For as long as am waiting to see part 2 of a remaking already 2 part movie i was expecting a really big WAAAw but the CGI killed it for me distract the experience of watching already a great movie with lots of good material and scary part with great actors

BAD JOKE. JUMP SCARE. REPEAT

[zander-95284 · 3/10 · 30 September 2019]

Agh.. WOAH! agh.. WOAH! agh.. WOAH! agh.. WOAH! The beginning 30-40 mins was a decent setup, well shot and the dinner scene was somewhat funny. Then it all goes down hill from there.

A great movie, that could have been even better...

[Dannyboi94 · 8/10 · 7 September 2019]

IT Chapter 1 was, in my opinion, a fantastic movie, not because of the scares (despite not having many), but because of the characters. The kids in that movie were just flawless, they worked so well off each other. I didn't think the grown-up versions wouldn't even come close to the chemistry that their younger counterparts had, and I wasn't wrong. Despite having a brilliant cast as the older versions, they just didn't have that same spark. Now this can be because they haven't seen each other in 27 years, most of them are estranged, and are living very different lives. Of course they wouldn't be the same as they were as children, but I felt this dragged it down a little. But despite this, every actor played their role perfectly, with the highlights being Bill Hader as Richie Tozier and James Ransone as Eddie Kaspbrak. These two were flawless as the older versions of their characters. The other actors, were also very good, but you would expect the likes of James McAvoy and Jessica Chastain to give great performances. And like the previous movie, Bill Skarsgård nails it as Pennywise. You can tell he inherited his family's trend of playing psychotic characters, because he is so good here, he is almost too good. The character of Henry Bowers was pointless, and added nothing to the film, he could have just been cut out completely.

The movie has tons of pros and cons, with "some" of the direction, cinematography, the soundtrack, the acting being the main highlights of the film. It is a stunning looking movie, from the lighting to the camera angles. But there are also tons of bad things about the movie, that stopped it from becoming better.

One thing is that, it over uses CGI. While in some scenes, they clearly used practical effects, and make-up, because some of the creature designs are remarkable, its just a shame that some of the scenes that could have been terrifying, were filled with unnecessary CGI, especially at the end. Another problem I had with the movie, is its pacing. The movie seems to cut and dash between scenes, despite the movie being ridiculously long, like seriously, this movie is almost as long as Avengers: Endgame, that isn't normal for a horror film. The film drags in places, yet, I cant think of what scenes they could have cut out, because the scenes shown, were needed, but at the same time, while I was watching, I felt like they had cut tons of the film out. Some scenes were too quick, and felt rushed.

But my biggest complaint was that it tried to put TOO much comedy in there. The first chapter was funny at times, but the comedy was well done, here there are some terrifying and thrilling scenes, and they are bogged down with quick one-liners. It ruined those scenes. Why the director did this is a mystery.

IT Chapter 2 is a good film, it has some great moments, but also some bad ones. The scenes with the younger versions were the best scenes, and some of the creepy eerie moments, where Pennywise was tormenting children, were all perfect. But the film suffers from the typical shove CGI here, shove CGI there, and it really brings it down, as well as the pacing. But despite that, I still enjoyed it.

7.6/10

I really wanted to love IT!!!!

[raquel_pompey · 5/10 · 13 September 2019]

Okay so saw the first remake of the movie, was absolutely in love. I went and saw the second one today and didn't feel any where near close to what I felt for the first one. It was super long but that isn't even what upset me. It was just lacking in delivery! Pennywise was hardly in the movie. He was in it but they spent so much time soul searching the past of the characters that the real present stuff went lacking. Needless to say the first remake is an all time favorite. This one, I definitely should've waited until it came out on DVD. Just being honest. The first one was way to good for this to be part 2. It didn't deliver the expectation that the first one set.

The Reunion of the Losers Club

[claudio_carvalho · 6/10 · 31 December 2019]

When residents in Derry disappear, Mike Hanlon (Isaiah Mustafa) summons his childhood friends from the Losers Club from twenty-seven years ago. Beverly Marsh (Jessica Chastain), Bill Denbrough (James McAvoy), Richie Tozier (Bill Hader), Ben Hanscom (Jay Ryan) and Eddie Kaspbrak (James Ransone) head to Derry while Stanley Uris (Andy Bean) commits suicide. They reunite at a Chinese Restaurant and soon they recall their oath and the evil Pennywise (Bill Skarsgård). Meanwhile Mike tries to convince his friends to fight the clown again.

"It Chapter Two" is the sequel of the 2017 film based on the novel by Stephen King. The cast is impressive, with names such as Jessica Chastain and James McAvoy; the long production has great but excessive special effects; but the film is less scary that the first part. Bill Skarsgård steals the show in the role of the evil Pennywise. My vote is six.

Title (Brazil): "It: Capítulo Dois" ("It: Chapter Two")

We're losers and we always will be

[Sibi_5181 · 7/10 · 7 September 2019]

Many of them compared Chapter 1 with Chapter 2 but didn't realise they were all in one book. It's nearly 3 hours long but it's necessary as it's 1100+ pages novel, it wasn't even boring. Cast, screenplay, direction, cinematography, bg scoring were felicitous. Pennywise's performance was great. Many jumpscares were there, not just for name sake but it was along the storyline. Many bashed the movie just because critics did, trying to be intellectual. There were cons in the movie like very silly jokes on a serious shot(atmost 5 times), few poor choices of dialogues. Watch it if you're horror fan/have fun watching a movie.

I think some maybe even most people are treating this as if it were a straight up sequel when they really shouldn't.

[mjjenkins-40538 · 10/10 · 4 September 2019]

Although Stephen King's IT novel is more of back and forth from adult to kid and back and forth from adult to kid and so on, IT : Chapter 2 should be looked at like it's the 2nd half of one big story, which is exactly what it is rather than a sequel. It's really not a sequel. Just like the 2nd half or "adult half" of the 1990 TV Miniseries/movie is not a sequel, it's just the 2nd half of one big story/movie. Let's face it, unless they're the Godfather Part 2, Aliens, Terminator 2 : Judgement Day, The Dark Knight, The Empire Strikes Back, and maybe a couple of other big time hit sequels, the sequel almost always gets hated on, critiqued to death, disregarded as "unoriginal", "same old same old", "not very creative", treated like the "intruder", etc etc....it's the same for 90% of remakes..but people need to realize and understand that IT : Chapter 2 is not a sequel and that IT : Chapter 1 and IT : Chapter aren't remakes to the 1990 TV minseries/movie either.

Secondly, almost every negative review on Rotten Tomatoes or YouTube or on the Internet somewhere (and I'm pretty sure they'll make their way onto here sooner or later as well) have complaints about the runtime of 2 hours and 49 minutes and that it's "too long" and blah blah blah. I don't see how you can make this whole story put to film not be at least 5+ hours long (Chapter 1 and Chapter 2 combined)..at the VERY least. The novel is over 1,100 pages long ! 1,138 pages to be exact. "IT" should have been a 10-15 1 hour episode series on Netflix to be done properly, to be honest..but if you go the cinema route with it (and they did, obviously), between Chapter 1 and Chapter 2, it has to be, at the very least, 5 hours or so if the Director or Writers want to be even remotely faithful to King's novel and make fans of King and the novel at least somewhat satisfied. And you also have 7 protagonists..SEVEN..6 of which are main protagonists. That's A LOT character developing and character story arcs that have to be told and take place unless you want a lazily and poorly directed and written film with terrible story telling and bad or no/next to no character development.

This film delivers great character development and great character and story arcs for all of the main protagonists/characters of the film. This film is really entertaining overall. There are pacing issues but those really seem minor when you step back and look at this film as a whole. This film was really good on it's own and holds up very well on it's own. Yes, it relied on Chapter 1 some, obviously, because Chapter 1 is part of the overall story (Again, it's NOT a sequel. I'm really talking about how well Chapter 2 is made when saying "it's really good on it's own) but when you put Chapter 1 and Chapter 2 together and make it one big story/film like it should be, it's AWESOME. Pennywise is also at his most serious and gruesome in this one. This one doesn't cut away just as someone or a helpless kid is about to get bitten or eaten until after you see and hear plenty enough, if you know what I mean. More gore in this one. It definitely earns every bit of it's R rating. Bill Hader, Jessica Chastain, Bill Skarsgard, and James Mcavoy are excellent, especially Hader and Skarsgard. Nobody was bad though..everyone was, at least, good. The CGI was also much better in this one..of course it would be though because it had a much bigger budget to work with than Chapter 1 did.

My biggest con..and it's the same as my biggest con for Chapter 1. Too many ill timed funny jokes. 2 or 3 jokes when it's the right time for them are great and it works. It lightens things up even if just for a few seconds and during the RIGHT times. And this film has a few well timed funny moments as well, don't get me wrong. But the funny/comedy/jokes at the wrong times, especially in a horror movie, just suck, to put it simply. It ruins scenes especially scenes that are supposed to be or should be horrifying and terrifying and scary and making you nervous and tense and scared and such. And unfortunately, this film has those ill timed/placed jokes as well.

Overall though, this film is great..especially when you look at as whole with Chapter 1.

Liked Part 1 better

[Gordon-11 · 10 March 2020]

The film has many scary elements, and is effective in deliverying scars. However, the ending is a little contrived. I liked Part 1 better.

Does It live up to its high expectations?

[kaneeddy · 7/10 · 5 September 2019]

It Chapter 2 is a good movie that manages to keep you entertained through it's nearly 3 hour run time. This really tries to be a sequel in every way with a bigger is better approach and at points some of its attempts to frighten you can be quite predictable at times, however the film to me is scarier then the first as there is more variation in Pennywises attempts to frighten. The cast for this movie is one of its strongest points James mcavoy, (Bill), Jessica Chastain, (Beverly), Bill Hader, (Richie) alongside Bill Skarsgard, (Pennywise), all giving some very excellent performances. I was very satisfied with the way this movie played out and was delighted by the performances, definitely a horror worth seeing.

My Review

[twaissighazi · 9/10 · 7 September 2019]

I love IT Chapter Two!! I understand what some people are saying is wrong with this movie and I too have some problems with the movie, but this movie is still amazing. The casting choice is the best I've ever seen, especially with Bill Hader as Richie, Finn Wolfhard in the first movie was the highlight for Chapter One and this time Bill Hader is the highlight for Chapter Two. The final confrontation is amazing, I was not disappointed with it at all, the giant spider from the original TV miniseries as a huge disappointment but the monster for this film is AMAZING. Going to be honest, I am interested to see if there will ever be an IT Chapter Three movie, if there ever will be one, I hope is an origin movie for Pennywise and maybe we can get a scene with the Turtle fighting IT.

It was fair, it just lacked true horror.

[Sleepin_Dragon · 7/10 · 15 September 2019]

I made the decision to watch the first part just prior to seeing this second chapter, as for me it's one film. I'm glad I did, it's a direct continuation.

I think the ups and downs of the first film apply here. On the plus side it looks wonderful, it's slick, well produced, overall it was visually appealing. Bill Skarsgård makes a wonderful Pennywise, he's terrifying and captivating, I loved how he moved and spoke. Very well acted, I especially loved James McAvoy, clever casting.

On the downside, it's the scariest, most messed to book I've ever read, that horror didn't translate well, I felt like I was watching an adventure thriller for teens at times, it had lots going on, lots of thrills, but horror? No. It was a bit formulaic, each character hot their respective item, and each was terrorised one by one, it needed more surprises, more shocks.

I preferred the first part, but I think they did a good job here, I hope it's released with both chapters linked. Overall, I enjoyed very much.

Chapter I 7.5/10 Chapter II 7/10

Thus movie is a disgrace...

[gcarpiceci · 1/10 · 26 September 2019]

...it is a disgrace because it is a gross betrayal of the original book. IT - the book - is a psychological thriller about friendship, about relationships, it is about the deep fears we have as kids and which grow with us until we are adults; it is about how we learn fighting and ultimately defeating these fears. IT - the movie, this movie - is a cheap zombie movie stuffed with special effects and CGI with the sole purpose of jump-scaring the audience. There is no narrative, no storytelling, nothing more than a random - and awfully long - sequence of third league horror vignettes. Shame on this movie!